Kane Cornes is facing more backlash from a second AFL club after the controversial Channel 7 pundit was issued a ban by North Melbourne on Wednesday.
The Port Adelaide great landed himself in hot water after he had been accused of ‘bullying’ as well as launching ‘personal and vindictive attacks’ against 20-year-old North Melbourne star Harry Sheezel.
The young midfielder has enjoyed an excellent season so far in the AFL, but following the Kangaroos’ nine-point defeat by Port Adelaide on Saturday, he was accused of stat-padding by Cornes.
The Channel 7 broadcaster claimed that while Sheezel had a ton of possessions during the match, his lack of impact for the Roos was concerning. He noted Sheezel as being fourth in the competition for disposals but added that the No 3 draft pick, who was signed to the Roos in 2022, was 17th in the league for score involvements.
Cornes was subsequently blasted by his fellow Channel 7 pundits on The Agenda Setters, for branding Sheezel’s style of play ‘Sheezey Ball’.
Both Craig Hutchison and his old adversary Dale Thomas, called the comment ‘harsh’.
Footy great Kane Cornes has revealed he has been banned by another AFL club after North Melbourne said he was not welcome in the rooms after their game against Essendon
It came after he took aim at North Melbourne star Harry Sheezel (pictured with partner Mischa Rajch) claiming the youngster had been stat-padding
Cornes was also critical of North Melbourne senior coach Alastair Clarkson (pictured right)
North have also been scathing of the 42-year-old’s criticisms of Jy Simpkin as well as his remarks about Alastair Clarkson and club president Sonja Hood.
After Tuesday’s broadcast of The Agenda Setters, North Melbourne’s football general manager Todd Viney said that Cornes would be blocked from interviewing the team’s players and coaches during Thursday’s clash between the Kangaroos and Essendon.
But the move has been blasted by Caroline Wilson as childisgh.
‘I actually think it’s quite juvenile … and quite petty. It doesn’t show great strength to me,’ she said to 7News.
Cornes, meanwhile, has subsequently broken his silence on the matter, telling Channel 7 that his comments weren’t bullying and that North used ‘provocative language’ to describe what had happened.
‘I think the dangerous part about it is the provocative language (North used),” Cornes said after the ban.
‘I think it very much blurs the line. That wasn’t bullying.’
Meanwhile, Cornes also revealed on SEN that being banned by a footy club wasn’t new ground for him.
Cornes issued a strong response to North Melbourne’s ban, asserting that his comments were ‘not bullying’
Roos footy boss Todd Viney (right) blasted Cornes for the comments claiming they were ‘personal and vindictive’
‘I’m banned from the Western Bulldogs,” Cornes said on SEN.
Gerard Healy replied ‘And the West Coast Eagles although I think you’re back now that (Adam Simpson) has left.’
‘These things ebb and flow,’ Cornes replied. ‘The Western Bulldogs wouldn’t have me in their changerooms the other night. This isn’t new.’
‘It won’t affect anything … let’s just see if this strategy, if it is a strategy, comes to anything,’ he added.
Speaking on Wednesday to Seven, he believes North and Alastair Clarkson are running away from criticism.
‘The Alastair Clarkson they thought they were getting (when they hired him for the 2023 season) was the Hawthorn version of Alastair Clarkson where he was strong enough and brave enough to front up and answer that type of criticism face-to-face and man-to-man,’ Cornes said.
During an Instagram video, Cornes addressed the furore around the incident, stating that he had affirmed on a number of occasions that he ‘really rated’ Sheezel.
Viney, though, said he ‘wasn’t holding my breath for an apology’, as he tore into the 42-year-old pundit over the saga.
Cornes (left) has now revealed that he’s been banned by the Western Bulldogs too
Sheezel added that he just wanted to put the matter behind him, stating that there’s no ‘bad blood’ between him and Cornes
‘On the back of some commentary that we feel over my short time here, there’s been some real personal attacks on the club, vindictive attacks that we feel have been unwarranted,’ Kangaroos general manager of football Todd Viney said on Wednesday.
‘We believe some of the commentary from Kane, particularly early this week with a couple of our players, Jy Simpkin and Harry Sheezel, overstepped the line – [it] was inappropriate, targeted, vindictive bullying behaviour that we as a club won’t stand for.
‘We’re open to balanced critique of our performances but when it starts to overstep the line and become personal it’s my responsibility and the club’s responsibility to look after our people.
‘Until we feel like there’s a more respectful conversation and dialogue from Kane around our people and club we won’t be engaging with him on any of his media channels.’
Sheezel is averaging an impressive 29.7 disposals per game and is one of North’s top performers through the midfield.
The footy star has also broken his silence on the matter, stating that he respects Cornes’ view in some regards but said the Port great had perhaps gone too far.
‘To be honest, Kane is entitled to his opinion at the end of the day, it’s his role in the media. I can’t control that. Maybe it overstepped the boundary a bit,’ the 20-year-old told SEN Radio this week.
‘The club has supported me really well. End of the day I’m an AFL footballer and I’ve signed up for the scrutiny that comes with it.
Cornes said the bans by North and the Western Bulldogs ‘won’t affect anything’. He added: ‘Let’s just see if this strategy, if it is a strategy, comes to anything’
‘I wish it hadn’t blown up into what it has but that’s the nature of it, I just hope I can get back to my football.
‘(Cornes went) maybe a little too far with some of the terms he used. Looking at what he was saying, I do agree I could have more impact on games — but I’m playing the role my coaches have assigned to me.
‘On the stat-padding side, I don’t believe in that. I’m never going to be perfect at it, I do understand what he’s saying that I could be more damaging with the ball.’
While still in the fledgling years of his footy career, Sheezel is still learning to deal with the scrutiny players receive from media and fans, adding that sometimes the comments ‘do hit you’ but wanted to move on from the scrutiny.
‘The media have every right to their opinion but at the end of the day we’re all human beings,’ he added.
‘I hope now to just put it behind me. Let’s focus on the win, that will help me move on.
‘I’ve got no bad blood with Kane, he’s entitled to his opinion — it’s his role. I have nothing against him. I’m going to focus on what I can control and move on.
‘The attention has gone overboard. I want to sweep it under the rug.’
